Nintendo makes Revolution revelation

Nintendo last week revealed that its next-generation console, 'Revolution', will be a slimline unit as thick as three DVD cases when it ships next year.

That's undoubtedly a dig at Xbox 360, launched last week and which - despite its gently concave contours - is not exactly a small unit. That said, this three-case thickness only applies to Revolution's "final form", so presumably it's safe to expect prototypes to look rather more chunky.

Both Revolution and Xbox 360 will be powered by custom PowerPC processors from IBM, and graphics cores from ATI. Like the new Microsoft box - and indeed Sony's rather older PlayStation 2 - Revolution can be sat horizontally or vertically.

Nintendo said Revolution will play GameCube discs in its slot-loading drive, though the console's own media will be 12cm discs. The new machine will be "wireless Internet ready out of the box", from which statement we assume it will be 'ready to connect to the Net' rather than 'ready to have an optional wireless adaptor fitted', which is what Xbox 360 appears to be.

Nintendo also touted Revolution's "quick start-up time and quiet, low-power operation", and promised further details over the coming months. ®